Which cards are prime cards and when should I apply for them?

I want to apply for Chase Freedom or Discover More Card or AMEX Blue Cash Perferred. I have four credit cards La Curaçao Credit limit 1757 opened since jan. 2010 Helzberg HSBC/Capital One 752 opened since Dec. 2010 Wells Fargo college credit card 1700 opened May 2011 Honda Power Equipment Wells Fargo 1300 opened Aug 2011 Utilization is around 11% Credit scores are Experian 728 Equifax 710 Transunion 745 What do u think I need to get this cards and what incomes any advice would help.

Re: Which cards are prime cards and when should I apply for them?

I would arbitrarily call any rewards card with an APR <15%, or non-rewards card with APR <10% a prime card. Assuming it doesn't have any unnecessary fees attached. Anything with an annual fee that does not provide great benefits (i.e. any non-AmEx card with an AF) would be subprime. Also, any card that charges fees for things like making an online payment or payment over the phone, etc.

Lenders that only offer prime cards, to my knowledge include Discover, AMEX, Chase, Bank of America (though some people would want to make them a sub-prime lender ). Most credit unions products would be considered prime.

Some lenders, like Capital One, offer both prime and sub-prime products.

Then there are the exclusively sub-prime lenders. CFAs like CitiFinancial or really AnythingFinancial. I cannot recall most of the sub-prime lenders names. First Premier, etc.

Re: Which cards are prime cards and when should I apply for them?

Back when I was last applying for prime cards, in 2008, you would have easily been approved for any of the cards you mentioned. Now, it will depend on a lot of factors, but I would still guess that you would be approved.

Re: Which cards are prime cards and when should I apply for them?

Mendoric wrote:I want to apply for Chase Freedom or Discover More Card or AMEX Blue Cash Perferred. I have four credit cards La Curaçao Credit limit 1757 opened since jan. 2010 Helzberg HSBC/Capital One 752 opened since Dec. 2010 Wells Fargo college credit card 1700 opened May 2011 Honda Power Equipment Wells Fargo 1300 opened Aug 2011 Utilization is around 11% Credit scores are Experian 728 Equifax 710 Transunion 745 What do u think I need to get this cards and what incomes any advice would help.

Are these FICO or FAKO? FICO is only avail for EQ and TU. EQ FICO can be purchased here or from EQ, but you need to be sure you're getting FICO and not the EQ FAKO. TU can be purchased here or free w/Walmart CC. EX FICO cannot be purchased any longer. So, unless you got the EX 728 listed above from a lender, it's a FAKO score and not comparable w/your FICO.

Your util is low and you have a couple years of history, so you should be able to get Chase. IME Discover is a little harder to get and CLs tend to be lower, but YMMV. Amex would be the hardest. Their revolvers usually require a FICO in the mid to high 700s. You might be better off starting w/a charge, like Zync or Green. If approved, you can try for the BCP on the same day and will likely only get one HP. One reason to try for the easier one first is that if denied, you cannot app for any other Amex for 30 days. If you don't get the BCP, you can use the charge for 6 mos and then try again. Also, once you get an Amex, you can app for a new card and will only get a HP if approved. If not approved, it will be a SP.

Also, have you tried for any CLIs with your current cards. I wouldn't waste my time w/Cap One because they aren't doing customer-initiated CLIs, but La Curaco (don't know them) and Wells Fargo might. You've had each of them for at least a year, so I'd try for a CLI, even if it's a HP.

ETA: You may be better off getting CLIs and letting them report before apping for new CCs, because most CCs won't go much beyond your highest current CL. So, any approvals would probably be around $2k. That's how I got my CLs higher -- with CLIs and then apping and new CCs will usually match your current CLs.

Re: Which cards are prime cards and when should I apply for them?

I'm not sure if Amex or Discover are necessarily harder than the other to be approved. Discover CLs are definitely a YMMV, because I, unlike most others, have gotten 4 or 5 unsolicited CLIs from them over the past 4 years, whereas all my other CLIs have been at my request. That is unrelated, though. Chase is definitely the easiest of the three to be approved for, though IMO, Discover and AMEX are far more desirable.

I would apply for Chase, and if approved, you may have a shot at one of the other two.

Re: Which cards are prime cards and when should I apply for them?

I would try for the discover more card. I had 1 year of credit history and two cards with limits of 200 and 1300 dollars, they gave me a 2500 limit and even asked if I wanted more which I declined. They pulled TU for me.

Re: Which cards are prime cards and when should I apply for them?

Thank you all for your replies and my income is around 19k I'm still a student and my scores for TU and EQ are fico and the EX I don't know if it's fico I got it from an identity theft protection website provided from Wells Fargo. Also i'm 20 still and will this be a problem when applying? Well I think I'm going to let my newest card reach a year and apply for discover or chase or maybe both.

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